Teach your child to express negative emotions

22 January 2016

Not all children know how to deal with negative emotions. Some of them have strong reactions and they even become aggressive, while some suffer in silence.

Expressing emotions, even in an aggressive way, is a better option for the child because the negative emotion, whether it's fear, anger or dissatisfaction, will get out. Of course, in this case there could be consequences for such behaviour. On the other hand, children who keep quiet about their negative emotions can have scars, they can withdraw to themselves and sometimes even hurt themselves. Obviously, neither option is beneficial for the child.

The situations that lead to negative emotions are fights, mocking, isolation or any form of bullying. If you notice that your child has hidden and suppressed emotions, you can help him or her to express them in various ways.

One of the ways to reach your child is through creative expression. Here's how to do that.

Children love stacking things and doing crafts. Not only is this fun but it also encourages the development of valuable skills. It's exactly this that will be the tool for your child to open up and talk about emotions.

Make a figurine with your child, for example, a small puppy from a toilet paper roll. While you're making it, encourage your child to connect with the puppy. Tell your child that it's your new pet and that you need to find the name for it. You can also use it in a game that you will encourage. Put the puppy in various situations that could bring out negative emotions. Encourage your child to play different roles – first a puppy, than the puppy's master. You can play various roles too.

Listen to your child and watch the reactions in various roles. You will easily recognize the situations which are unsettling for your child, in which situations he or she needs to play a role, and which are natural.

In this way you will understand your child better, even if you didn't have similar experience before.